Smithsonian Unveils Sept. 11 Artifacts for Public Display

More than 50 objects recovered directly from the three sites attacked on Sept. 11, 2001, will go on view at the Smithsonian’s National Museum of American History in Washington, D.C. from September 3-11.

The display, called "September 11: Remembrance and Reflection," will feature artifacts from New York, the Pentagon, and Shanksville, PA, as well as new acquisitions from the Transportation Security Administration (TSA).

Designed more as a presentation and not as a full exhibition, the Smithsonian’s display will be shown as a unique blend of a public program and viewing.

During these nine days, the artifacts will be placed on open tables, instead of behind glass cases, so that visitors can have an intimate experience to help them better reflect on the significance and remembrance of what occurred on this historic day.

Items on view at the National Museum of American History will include airplane fragments, a crushed FDNY fire truck door, a Pentagon building map and various objects recovered from offices. Photos from the museum's collection provide context.

In December 2001, three months after the terrorist attacks, Congress named this museum the nation's official repository for artifacts related to September 11, 2001.

As part of an ongoing collection effort, the museum will accept objects from TSA into the collection during a special ceremony. The display will feature video excerpts from the Smithsonian Channel documentary, "9/11: Stories in Fragments," and a video ABC News made for the museum on the one-year anniversary of the attacks.

The public can view “September 11: Remembrance and Reflection" between 11 a.m. and 3 p.m.